You Said, We Did Summary- South Gloucestershire and Bristol Young Carers

Focus Group held on 18th February 2015

This Healthwatch South Gloucestershire report is a summary report of ‘You Said, We Did’ group work. The report summarises the feedback shared with Healthwatch by the South Gloucestershire and Bristol Young Carers and outlines how Healthwatch and the Young Carers could continue working together to influence the development of health and social care services.

Young Carers is part of Carers Support Centre, an independent registered charity for carers in Bristol and South Gloucestershire. Carers Support Centre provides services for carers of all ages. This includes a confidential telephone support line, one-to-one support and carers’ groups, activities for carers to take some time out, short breaks and training.

The Young Carers service provides helps and supports children aged 8-18, their families and professionals working with young carers.

The following feedback was shared with Healthwatch by nine young people attending the Young Carers Group. They told the Healthwatch team that the main issues for them were:

- Collecting prescriptions from doctors and pharmacies

- Being ignored by health professionals

- Not being offered a choice

- Having to translate for parents with English as a second language

- Young carers not offered enough support

All the feedback provided by the group was inputted to Healthwatch Bristol’s database of issues and concerns. The report was also be presented to the Healthwatch Bristol Advisory Group to propose further uptake of the issues identified in this report. The Young Carer’s feedback was also included in the Healthwatch Bristol Children and Young People’s Mental Health and Wellbeing report later in 2015.